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What is a reiki training like

Training in reiki level 1 and level 2

 

In July and August 2024, I had the opportunity to take Usui Reiki training with Reiki 4 Life. It was not something that I ever expected to be doing, but it was an incredible experience and I wanted to share my thoughts and feelings about it here.

For most everything, I consider myself to be a “flexible skeptic.” That is to say, I respect other people’s beliefs but when it comes to the spiritual, supernatural, or metaphysical, I may not believe something myself. I’m kind of a Fox Mulder (X-files) in that “I want to believe” but I won’t believe just anything. Reiki was one of those things where I thought, “Sure maybe that’s a real thing but I haven’t experienced it so I can’t know for sure for myself.” That was the case until 2021 anyway.

In 2021, I purchased a Maligano jasper tower from a shop called One With Gems. I can’t remember what exactly caused me to search for it. Maligano jasper is a beautiful stone, formed in ancient volcanic areas of Indonesia. I had read that it was great for balancing and grounding. It’s a stone of transformation; The Crystal Council says, “Maligano Jasper transforms our spirit from within and provides an aura that can closely resemble a “rebirth” effect.”

My first experience with reiki energy

When I ordered the Maligano jasper tower from One With Gems, it barely registered for me that the listing said something along the lines of: “This is the EXACT crystal you will receive, infused with love and Reiki for your highest good.” She has this on many of her listings.

When my order arrived, I unwrapped the jasper and it was even more beautiful in person than it was in the photos! When I held it in my hand, I was shocked because I could feel a tingling vibration from the stone. It was almost as if it had a very low electrical current running through it. I had never experienced anything like that before, and I have loved rocks and gems since I was a child. I had my husband hold it and he of course did not feel anything. He is as non-sensitive as I am sensitive, but that provides a much needed balance.

A word of caution on maligano jasper

I am going to be making some posts about my favorite crystals, but until I do please note that if you are looking for Maligano jasper, Bumblebee jasper (which is not even jasper) is often mislabeled as Maligano. Bumblebee jasper is toxic and can cause skin reactions, so please be mindful to buy it from shops that you know are knowledgeable and trustworthy. I have seen Bumblebee labeled as Maligano many times on Etsy. One way that I use to tell them apart is that, as you would expect from a name like “bumblebee”, it is much more yellow whereas Maligano is more of an orange shade. (See the photo of my Maligano tower to compare.)

 

reiki infused maligano jasper tower kaya holistic energy
My Maligano Jasper tower from One With Gems

When I ordered the Maligano jasper tower from One With Gems, it barely registered for me that the listing said something along the lines of: ” This is the EXACT crystal you will receive, infused with love and Reiki for your highest good.” She has this on many of her listings.

When my order arrived, it was the tower and a few other things, I unwrapped the jasper and it was even more beautiful in person than it was in the photos! When I held it in my hand, I was shocked because I could feel a tingling vibration from the stone. It was almost as if it had a very low electrical current running through it. I had never experienced anything like that before, and I have loved rocks and gems since I was a child. I had my husband hold it and he of course did not feel anything. He is as non-sensitive as I am sensitive, but that provides a much needed balance.

I re-read the listing and saw what I had a vague recollection of, that the owner of One With Gems infuses reiki into the gems and stones that she sells. It was undeniable that this stone felt very different than any stone I had ever held, so that day I began to believe in reiki. When you experience something like that for yourself, it is undeniable.

To this day, when I hold the Maligano jasper tower, it still has a very distinct tingling vibration. It feels very much alive to me. It’s also a different feeling than what I experience when practicing reiki.

Why I decided to take a reiki training

When I broke my leg in January 2024, I promised myself that I would get out more and do more things when it healed. I had also started working on removing the walls and blocks within myself. I knew that much of my cynicism was learned. It was protection from disappointment, embarrassment, and rejection. If I never believed in anything or opened up to anyone, a part of me believed that I would not be hurt. This is, of course, not true. I had built my walls over decades, making them higher and thicker every time that I took them down a little bit and later regretted it.

I knew that at this point in my life, these walls were not protecting me. They were only separating me from people and experiences. They were keeping me from feeling connected and they were the reason that I was lonely. I was not exactly sure how to begin disassembling them but I knew that part of what I needed to do was step outside of my comfort zone.

I was reading over the Metaphysical Mississippi newsletter when I saw that a Reiki Level 1 training was going to be happening in a week. The newsletter said that spots were remaining, so I impulsively decided that I would sign up for it. I had never been to Holistic Health and Healing, the place where the training was held, before so I was very nervous beforehand. Had I not pre-paid for it, I am sure that I would have talked myself out of going.

I am very glad I did not talk myself out of it!

Krista, the co-owner of Holistic Health and Healing and one of the Reiki4Life teachers has made the space so inviting and comfortable. Jina, the other Reiki4Life teacher, and Krista were both so friendly, I instantly felt at ease in spite of being the first person there. Even though I try to never arrive anyplace more than 5 minutes early, I am usually still the first person there somehow.

The class was small, just 3 students and the 2 teachers. I think it was a good size and it was easy to open up and share with Jina, Krista, and the other 2 students.

Find your wellness Kaya holistic wellness reiki Mississippi

“Reiki is love, Love is wholeness,
Wholeness is balance,
Balance is well-being,
Well-being is freedom from disease.”
– Dr. Mikao Usui

5 precepts for reiki practice

Just for today:

  • Do not anger
  • Do not worry
  • Be grateful
  • Do your purpose honestly
  • Be kind to all

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

“It is very important to understand that the Attunement does not open and does not form any energy channels, as well as it does not connect a person to any kind of energy source. The Reiki Attunement reveals the energy potential and establishes a direct connection between a person and the Primary source of Reiki.”
– Katya Ki, Reiki Master Teacher

What is a reiki training like?

A reiki training is pretty much like any other training that you would take. We learned about what reiki is and perhaps more importantly what it is not. Jina and Krista have different reiki lineages, so they taught us a little about that in level 1 training and more in-depth in level 2. We learned about Dr. Usui (Usui Sensei), how he discovered reiki, and how he went on to teach others how to practice. Of course, you don’t have to take a reiki training to learn about that, you can read more about the history of reiki on The International Center for Reiki Training (ICRT) website. If you are interested, I encourage you to learn more about it!

I very much enjoyed learning about the history. Perhaps because I took Shotokan karate as a child and teen, which is also Japanese in origin, the foundation and philosophy of the Usui method felt very familiar. I also find the 5 precepts, which the ICRT calls the 5 Admonitions, to be similar to the 8 fold path in Buddhism, which I have also studied and practice. Like many teachings, the 5 precepts are deceptively simple. They are difficult to do but also easy to do when we are acting in accordance to our highest purpose.

After a long day of learning, the students received an attunement. It was an indescribable experience, which I guess is good because it would not be appropriate to describe the experience itself on a blog. Instead, I will share with you the reflections that I had in my journal before and after the level 1 attunement. Prior to the attunement, I didn’t have any particular expectations. I didn’t know what to expect and I wasn’t sure I’d feel anything. That old cynicism likes to creep in whenever I have to believe anyone or trust them. Not having expectations means I won’t be disappointed by these awesome people that I have come to really like over the day of training! Right? 😉

It was honestly pretty effing cool.

For my level 1 attunement, I felt a distinct warmth that started in my middle finger and then moved to my other fingers, into the palms of my hands. It is interesting because when I practice I feel a lot of warmth from my hands and I’m someone that is typically cold with cool/cold hands. Warmth is also what those I have practice on most frequently report feeling. During the ceremony, I also had a lot of warmth around my crown chakra* and a feeling almost like a pop in my third eye. It wasn’t an uncomfortable feeling, just unusual. After the attunment, when I opened my eyes, I felt the most awake that I have ever felt. There were other things that I felt and saw during the attunement, but they are too personal and intimate to share. I haven’t shared those with anyone outside of the training, even my closest loved ones, and that feels appropriate.

*I feel it is important to say that chakras are not part of reiki training and practice. Information/beliefs about chakras are Indian in origin, while reiki is Japanese in origin. Chakras are most associated with Hinduism, a religion. The 7 chakras that most of us are familiar with are specifically part of Hatha and Kundalini yoga. Reiki is not associated with any particular religion. While many people, particularly westerners, work with both chakras and reiki, I feel that it is very important to understand the origin and history of these practices. Many people, myself included, work with both reiki energy (ki) and chakra health/unblocking.

I have seen people say things along the lines of: “energy is energy, no one owns this. It simply is.” That is true, however when we go beyond using the word “energy” and start speaking of “chakras” or “reiki” we must give these practices and lineages the respect they deserve. If you want to learn more What Is the Difference Between Reiki and Chakra Healing is a good, quick explainer.

 

 

 

Stacey Aldridge reiki level 1 practitioner certificate Kaya holistic wellness
I framed my reiki level one certificate because I’m a nerd!

r content on the page.”

Reiki level 2 and final thoughts

Reiki level 2 training was much like level 1. Some trainers do level 1 and level 2 two days in a row, but Krista and Jina do not, to give people time to digest all of the information. I appreciated that, because you get a lot of information in level 1 and much of it are things you do want to remember.

We learned more about our reiki lineages and more in-depth information about the history of reiki as well as practicing reiki. We practiced on each other and the trainers at each training. I think that experience is great because it gives you a chance to feel what is like to receive reiki as well as giving it. I had only ever received a free 15 minute reiki session at an event that I attended, so I was fairly new to reiki when I attended the level 1 class. Overall, I am very glad that I impulsively signed up for the level one class. I do plan to continue on to reiki master training, sometime in 2025. For now I am practicing on friends and family, both in person and distance reiki. I really enjoy learning and feeling how different the energy flow can be from person to person. I do find that my dogs don’t love receiving reiki, which is disappointing since animal reiki is something I am very interested in! We will keep practicing though.

If you’ve thought about taking a reiki class, and you have made it this far, this is your sign to take one! If you are near Jackson, Mississippi and able to take a class with Jina and Krista, I definitely recommend it. You can find their information on the Reiki4Life website

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I had a session with a celebrity exorcist

It is definitely not as sensational as it sounds, but it’s still pretty interesting.

I first came across R.H. (Rachel) Stavis, author of Sister of Darkness and exorcist to the stars, on the podcast Ghosted! by Roz Hernandez. She is a fan favorite guest and has been on three times but I never listened to any of her episodes. I don’t really like “demon” content in horror movies or stories, so I wasn’t really interested in listening to whatever an exorcist had to talk about. Then, Roz shared a video clip from one of the episodes on her social media. Rachel was so funny, down to earth, and no-bullshit that I immediately loved her. I tried to find the clip but unfortunately, it looks like it has been taken down. I went back and listened to her episodes. Then, I immediately bought Sister of Darkness to read. It’s a great book, I highly recommend it. It’s a spiritual memoir of sorts that is well written and highly entertaining.

After I finished the podcast episodes, I also followed Rachel on Instagram. To be honest, I initially followed because she’s beautiful and hot. However, after reading the book and engaging with her content, I really enjoyed the things that she shared – and I still do. It was years before I considered getting on her waiting list for a remote session. 

I had a cleansing with a celebrity exorcist
My altar space and floor cleared for my remote cleansing.

What is a non-denominational exorcism?

While Rachel refers to herself as an exorcist, she is a non-denominational exorcist. She is not affiliated with any church or religious group. She has the ability to physically see what she calls entity (aka attachments, aka demons) and that makes her very unique. She explains it in her book but also on the many podcasts she has been a guest on, not just Ghosted! Although, if you like comedy, the paranormal, and general queerness, you will like Roz. Beyond the ability to physically see entity, her beliefs about them are pretty much in line with conventional beliefs: negative entities seek out and can attach to those who are vulnerable. When we have lower vibration (or spiritual energy) due to things like depression or other mental illness; physical illness; addiction; or emotional trauma, to name a few things, we are more vulnerable to attachment. She also works with her client’s energy to remove things like trauma. Part of her work is focused on infertility. Some people might refer to her as a “light-worker” but her aesthetic is definitely more macabre, in spite of being one of the “good guys.” She’s way more Elvira than she is Glinda the good witch, in a good way! So unlike what you see in horror films, her exorcisms do not involve dousing people in holy water and screaming “the power of Christ compels you!”

Why did i decide i wanted a remote cleansing?

Before I broke my leg in January 2024, I had been struggling with some situational depression for about 3 weeks. I was going to work and functioning fine but in my down-time I was lying on the couch, playing The Legend of Zelda and feeling numb. After I broke my leg, I developed a rare neurological pain disorder called Complex Regional Pain Syndrome (CRPS). The combination of those things made me wonder if I had been vulnerable to attachment. I think that I part of me hoped that the CRPS was due to some metaphysical or supernatural cause and that maybe an “exorcism” might heal it. I had been following Rachel for several years at this point and already used the incense blend that she recommended in her book on a regular basis. When she posted in spring of 2024 that she was opening up sessions for September and gave information on how to join the waiting list, I impulsively joined it. To my surprise, I was contacted in May and given the information about sessions and how to book if I wanted to. I had just had my second nerve block to treat CRPS at that point and was walking with a cane. I still had significant swelling in my foot and ankle which caused mobility and endurance issues. I talked it over with my spouse and decided that it made sense to do it. Like I said, a part of me really wanted an easy way to cure my CRPS and make sure that I didn’t have to worry about not being able to walk in the future.

 

Complex regional pain syndrome CRPS still walking with a cane
Still using my cane to walk with CRPS in May 2024

Finally the day of the cleansing arrived

The summer went by quickly and my third nerve block actually returned me to 94-99% of my original mobility. Still, I really wanted to know – did I have an attachment? As the session got closer, I worried that I was going to be disappointed. Potentially, I could lose respect for someone that I really liked. I admittedly don’t trust people easily. “What if it turns out she’s just a really great writer who is also a scammer?” I worried.
“What if her assistant just emails me and tells me to burn some incense and lie down for an hour and I just have to trust she is actually doing something?”

In the directions her assistant sent, I was told to call a number on Skype at the time of my session. This of course made me nervous because phone calls make me nervous. As it turned out, I did have a video call with Rachel herself, who was in the same chair she uses for all of her social media videos. She asked why I wanted the session and I explained why. I keep using the term “cleansing” as opposed to “exorcism” because she did let me know that she did not see any attachment, which to be honest was a relief. Since I did not have an attachment, she would be removing old trauma and negative energy as opposed to entity. She gave me instructions on what to do and also said that because I am a “severe empath” (what she calls empaths who can pick up on the emotions of the dead as well as the living) I would be able to physically feel it. She gave a couple examples of what I might feel and we ended the call. I set a timer and laid down on my rug between some candles.

What does a remote cleansing feel like?

I found that she was correct, I did have distinct and different physical sensations throughout much of the 40 minutes that she had me lie down for the session. I almost immediately felt sensations around my head. I felt hot and cold at different times and I really should not have felt cold at any point because my home office is always the warmest room in the house. Plus, as you can see from the first picture above, I had put two pillows over the crack at the bottom of the door. I was burning incense and I did not want the dogs to breathe any of it in if they came to the door to spy on me, as they often like to do. I felt some popping sensations at times. I was very surprised at how quickly 40 minutes passed with me just lying there. I did feel lighter at the end of the session, as she had said that I would. Having just taken Reiki 2, it seemed familiar and I felt that she must be doing some type of remote energy work. There are many types of energy work, not just reiki.

 

Was it worth it?

Rachel said that she would send me an email after three days to let me know what she had found and with instructions. As with the cleansing, I was really surprised and impressed with the email that I received. She confirmed that I was a severe empath and gave me instructions for multiple things to do daily to help with that. She said that she removed some old trauma and negative energy and that there had been a lot around my neck and shoulders, so I should feel a difference. I had already noticed that my neck and shoulders, “where I carry all of my tension and stress,” as I often tell massage therapists, were significantly less tight and sore. It has been almost a month since the cleansing and I do feel better overall. It did not cure my CRPS but she does not and has not to my knowledge ever claimed to cure physical illnesses. It’s not a “miracle healing” service. Truth be told if it was, I wouldn’t have done it because I wouldn’t have believed in it anyway. I had hoped that maybe something external to me was causing the CRPS but it’s just my nervous system. Knowing myself, it is unsurprising that my nervous system is both sensitive and overactive.

I have been doing the things that Rachel told me to do, and I do find them helpful. I think that it was worth the time and the money that I paid. Rachel said that she has a waiting list of over 6,000 people and her assistant chooses people randomly or intuitively. I genuinely do not know why I was picked, except that it has assisted me with some mental blocks I had in my spiritual journey. That could well have been the negative energy she mentioned. I could say that Spirit knew it was time for those blocks to be removed but I know it could also have been nothing more than my own skeptical mind blocking me. Either way, it was helpful.

 

What you can do if you are interested in an exorcism or Learning more

Sister of darkness RH Stavis
Sister of darkness by R.H. Stavis

 

I highly recommend following @RHStavis on social media and reading Sister of Darkness. She gives a lot of great information away for free on her social media. She talks about blends that you can use in incense or diffuse to help with various things. She shares “songs from the dead” that she hears as a medium. She also shares information about astrology and similar things. She has said that 2024 has been the year that narcissistic and damaging relationships would be ending, whether or not we were ready to let them go. I have certainly seen that at work in the lives of my clients and to a lesser extent myself, since I have a very small, select circle these days.

I am currently doing her mediumship prompts with a “spirit buddy” which are also free on her Instagram. I will definitely be blogging about my experience with that, it’s already been pretty cool and the first exercise isn’t even over yet.

You can also join Rachel’s waiting list by visiting her website and sending a message, as a friend of mine did after hearing about my experience.

 

Disclaimer

Just in case I need to say this, I paid for my session and did not receive any sort of discount. None of this post is sponsored in any way. She has plenty of publicity, she does not need my little blog! 🙂

Stacey Aldridge

Stacey Aldridge

I am the founder of Kaya Holistic Wellness. Eventually, that will be something more but currently it is a blog. You can learn more about me here, if you want.

 

Why Wellness is unique to each person

Here at the Kaya Holistic Wellness website you’ll see “find your unique wellness” often. That’s because there is no “one size fits all” approach to wellness – it looks different for everyone.

It’s easy to find influencers who tell you they know exactly what you need, without knowing you at all! They say: you need this particular diet; you need this exact workout and to do it this many minutes/hours per week; you definitely need to drink X gallons of water a day. Exactly the same for everyone regardless of age, ability, dietary preferences, and ignoring any chronic illnesses or physical disabilities you may have. That is ridiculous! An 80 year old in good health, who has no dietary preferences, with no physical limitations is going to need something very different than a 50 year old with chronic digestive issues who is vegan or a 25 year old with Fibromyalgia and high cholesterol.

What influencers also ignore is that wellness goes beyond just food and exercise – it’s about social connection, spiritual practice if that is important to you, relationships, finances, sleep, there are so many dimensions to wellness. This is why we seek to help you find YOUR unique wellness. However it looks for you.

 

Kaya Holistic Wellness coaching all bodies are good bodies

““Wellbeing is about the combination of our love for what we do each day, the quality of our relationships, the security of our finances, the vibrancy of our physical health, and the pride we take in what we have contributed to our communities. Most importantly, it’s about how these five elements interact.”
– Tom Rath”

Moving beyond diet culture

Unfortunately we live in a society that seeks to tear us down and negatively impact our self-esteem because the diet industry is a multi-billion dollar industry. The beauty industry is also a multi-billion dollar industry. In order to make money, these industries need us to feel bad about ourselves. If we stop desiring to lose the last five pounds; stop trying to prevent aging; stop comparing ourselves to the perfect images we see on social media – they lose money. At Kaya we believe in health at every size (HAES.) Eating healthy foods and moving our body will not result in a tiny body for most of us and that’s ok! All bodies are good bodies. It is possible for some people that they may lose weight or their body shape may change when they begin to eat more healthfully or move more but that is not our goal. Wellness isn’t about how you look it’s about how you feel. 

Moving beyond the wellness aesthetic

I went to Instagram and searched the term “wellness.” Most of what comes up in the top posts are attractive, white women with bodies that are currently the most socially desirable: small waist, large butt. That is beginning to change, according to the articles that I see so I expect that if I did this again in three years it would be attractive, white women with very small bodies overall. The other pictures that were not white women or white men used buzzwords and phrases like “detox” “glow up” “lose weight” although I was heartened to see that many posts were about loving yourself and self-acceptance. However the self-acceptance posts were lists and inspirational quotes. They didn’t include images of non-white bodies, of larger bodies, of people who were not conventionally attractive and that is an issue. While wellness influencers (who let’s be honest are often part of the multi-billion dollar weight loss, fitness, and beauty industries) have a certain aesthetic, that aesthetic is not what wellness is. Wellness is anyone and everyone who is making a commitment to themselves to feel better. It’s not expensive candles and weekly massages, it’s tuning into your body and your mind to find out what is and is not working for you. It’s mindfulness not sketchy supplements.

 

Wellness is not being attractive and thin

Find your unique wellness

You may already know what you want to change but need guidance on how to implement it. It could be that you need the accountability of working with someone who will ask about the choices you have made that week. Or maybe you have no idea where to start – you know that you aren’t feeling well emotionally or physically but you have no clue what needs to change.

You might know zero about nutrition or mindfulness and want someone to help you find what wellness looks like for you! Now that you know what wellness is and more importantly what wellness isn’t, it’s time to begin. Wherever you are starting, Kaya Holistic Wellness is ready to help you on your journey.

Contact us today to get more information or get started!

Stacey Aldridge

Stacey is the founder of Kaya Holistic Wellness. She has had an interest in health and wellness since high school and became more interested in holistic health when she was in graduate school for social work. Stacey has a Master of Social Work from Jackson State University and advanced training in nutrition. Learn more about Stacey.

Stacey Aldridge founder of Kaya Holistic Wellness